east back from the brink. chip reid on the resignation of congressman jesse jackson, jr. the target of an ethics investigation. scott pelley with the c.e.o. of goldman sachs warning of the dangers of the fiscal cliff. >> what you won't repair is people's attitudes towards the united states. >> glor: and dean reynolds on why there's a smaller bounty to share with the hungry this thanksgiving. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with scott pelley. >> glor: good evening. scott's off tonight. i'm jeff glor. i eight days of bomb blasts and a celebration in gaza tonight after israel and hamas agreed to a cease-fire. a deal was announced in cairo by secretary of state hillary clinton and egypt's foreign minister. israel agreed to stop air strikes in gaza, where at least 161 palestinians have been

killed since last wednesday. hamas promised to stop firing rockets which have killed five israelis. there were fears the deal might not happen after a bomb went off on a bus in tel aviv this morning. 27 people were hurt, no one has claimed responsibility. we have reports from gaza and israel tonight. we begin with clarissa ward in cairo, where that cease-fire was brokered. >> reporter: after 24 hours of intense shuttle diplomacy, secretary clinton walked away with what she came for: a cease- fire agreement between israel and hamas that she called the first step in a long process. >> the people of this region deserve the chance to live free today's agreement is a step in the right direction that we should build on. now we have to focus on reaching a durable outcome that promotes regional stability and advances the security, dignity and legitimate aspirations of palestinians and israelis alike.

>> reporter: the new islamist government of egypt brokered the deal. in addition to the cease-fire, the agreement says that gaza's borders should be opened up after a four-hour cooling off period. currently, israel enforces strict travel restrictions on the 1.7 million palestinians living in gaza. the agreement would allow for more freedom of movement with egypt acting as a guarantor for both sides. hours after the announcement, hamas' political leader, khaled meshaal, thanked the egyptian government for brokering the deal. "egypt has dealt with the situation responsibly," he said, "and has understood the demands of the palestinian people." >> glor: clarissa joins us from cairo. clarissa, this cease-fire was supposed to have been announced last night. i wonder, what role did egypt play here? >> reporter: well, egypt has brokered this entire agreement. government officials have been shuttling back and forth for more than a week between the

hamas delegation here in cairo and the israeli delegation in cairo. and you heard secretary clinton thanking the egyptian government for its role because i think there's really a sense that they've struck a balance between appeasing their muslim brotherhood supporters who wanted to hear egypt take a tougher stance against israel whilst ensuring that the peace treaty between egypt and israel was never jeopardized. >> glor: clarissa ward, thank you. in israel, prime minister benjamin netanyahu made it clear he was acting on president obama's recommendation when he agreed to the cease-fire. allen pizzey is in tel aviv tonight. allen, was netanyahu reluctant to sign the cease-fire? >> reporter: he probably was, but he also didn't have a lot of choice, really, because they didn't want to go to a land war and they were under pressure from the americans. in his address to his people, netanyahu said that he thanked the americans for all their help and said that president obama had agreed that america would

help israel prevent the smuggling of weapons into gaza, which the israelis say all come from iran. >> glor: allen, from your advantage point, will this cease-fire hold? >> that's the $64,000 question. probably it will hold for a while. the problems will start tomorrow, 24 hours after this came into effect. they're supposed to start opening up the blockade on gaza for a freer flow of goods and people. that's hamas' primary condition after an end to the bombings of them. it's not what israel wants to do. that will be the sticking point, jeff. >> glor: allen pizzey in tel aviv. thank you. israel and hamas kept shooting almost until the cease-fire deadline. by then, israel had launched more than 1,500 air strikes on gaza. charlie d'agata is there. >> reporter: today, panicked residents fled their apartment building after an israeli air strike slammed into it. four-year-old abdel-rahman naim was carried from the scene in his father's arms. he was injured by shrapnel and pronounced dead at the hospital.

it's not the first time volunteer nurse huda has seen a child die this week. "i'm sad for every boy that comes to this hospital," she said. in the last 24 hours, dozens of civilians have died during israel's latest assault on gaza. nowhere was safe. last night, one air strike landed right next to our hotel, shattering the windows. this is the crater left behind from the impact of the explosion, and it's hard to know where the israeli military was aiming. this is a soccer field in the middle of a residential neighborhood surrounded by apartment buildings and hotels. but it's not difficult to see why this was a target. the israeli military released video of its strike on the hamas interior ministry calling it a command-and-control center and a hideout for militants. when we visited the next day, we saw a devastated area the size

of a city block. it was once the biggest government office in gaza city. >> this building for medical, for photo, for bank. where is the problem for israelis? >> reporter: the israeli military also launched sustained attacks on military targets in rafah in the southern gaza strip. yet hamas militants kept firing their rockets into israel, too, right up until the very moment the cease-fire took effect. and tonight, the once-empty streets of gaza city erupted-- not with explosions but with the sounds of cheering, fireworks and celebratory gunfire. >> glor: charlie d'agata joins us now from gaza city. charlie, i wonder if you can talk about this. how has the mood changed since this announcement?

>> reporter: jeff, it's difficult to convey the sense of relief that we have here tonight. for the past week or so, this place has been a ghost town, and for the past 24 hours we've seen some of the worst fighting. and now what we're seeing is the streets are filled with people. they're driving up and down, they're waving palestinian flags. there's a real sense of celebration. i don't think too many people would have believed that there would have been a cease-fire until it actually happened. >> glor: charlie d'agata, thank you. in india, the one attacker who survived the 2008 terror rampage in mumbai was executed today. ajmal kasab was hanged after his plea for clemency was rejected. four years ago, kasab and nine other members of the pakistani terror group tore through mumbai with grenades and automatic weapons. during a three-day siege, they killed 166 people. in this country, illinois congressman jesse jackson, jr., resigned today, just two weeks

ago he was reelected in a landslide even though he hadn't spent a minute on the campaign trail and was under an ethics investigation. he is now under a criminal investigation. chip reid has more on a man who was once one of the democrats' rising stars. >> reporter: in his letter of resignation to speaker of the house john boehner, jackson wrote, "my health issues and treatment regimen have become incompatible with service in the house of representatives." the son of civil rights leader jesse jackson, jackson, jr., mysteriously disappeared from public view last june. it was later revealed he was undergoing treatment for bipolar disorder. jackson was reelected earlier this month, though he did not actively campaign, recording only a single message for his constituents. but his health may not be the only factor in jackson's decision to resign. for more than a year, the washington field office of the f.b.i. has been investigating the possible misuse of campaign

funds, according to federal sources, who say discussions about a possible plea deal began in just the past few weeks. today, for the first time, jackson acknowledged that investigation. a plea deal does not appear to be imminent, jeff. late today, jackson's lawyers put out a written statement in which they said, "we hope to negotiate a fair resolution of the matter, but the process could take several months." >> glor: chip reid, thank you. congress and the president have just 40 days to avoid the so- called fiscal cliff. when the ball drops on new year's eve, tax hikes and severe spending cuts will kick in automatically unless a deal is reached. wyatt andrews spoke with two men who say they know how it should be done, if only washington would listen.

>> reporter: two years ago, the fiscal commission chaired by democrat erskine bowles and former republican senator alan simpson proposed every basic element of the fiscal cliff solution being discussed now. their plan was a mixture of higher taxes, lower spending and the reform of medicare and social security. both men told us sacrifice has to come from everyone. >> all of us have to have some skin in the game to get it done. >> if you want something, pay for it. it's a sick idea, but it is an interesting idea. >> reporter: their biggest idea was to increase revenue by combining both the president's demand for higher taxes on the rich and the republican proposal to get rid of tax loopholes. bowles/simpson would eliminate almost every tax deduction for individuals and corporations, with only a few exceptions for charity donations and home mortgage interests. >> this stuff goes to the wealthiest people in america. 20% of the american people use 80% of that stuff. >> we have $1.1 trillion of

loopholes, of back door spending in the tax code. >> reporter: $1.1 trillion? >> annual. and that's what we said: "let's start with a plan that wipes those out." >> reporter: their plan also called for deep spending cuts-- $200 billion a year-- and streamline both the pentagon and the federal bureaucracy. medicare and social security over time would reduce benefits give on the higher income families. your big message here is social security and medicare have to be on the table. there's no choice. >> i think most people understand that medicare has to be part of the deal. and most people believe today that you ought to do social security on a parallel track. >> reporter: both men blame the death of their report on lobbyists and warn that special interests are lined up again to fend off the budget cuts coming their way. >> everybody is just like my mama. they are. >> reporter: just like what, sir? >> like my mama. she turns to me, and she says,

"your daddy would be proud of you, you're putting our fiscal house in order, you have to stay at it, but don't mess with my medicare." >> reporter: bowles/simpson went nowhere two years ago, but its essential ideas are back in play. and the basic tax reform it called for-- once politically impossible-- is being embraced by both parties today. wyatt andrews, cbs news, washington. >> glor: the c.e.o. of goldman sachs tells scott pelley what a failure to reach a budget deal would mean. if you're traveling this holiday weekend, you'll have plenty of company. and on the eve of thanksgiving, the president talks turkey, when the "cbs evening news" continues. continues. uncomfortable. but when it's hard or hurts to bathroom, there's dulcolax stool softener. dulcolax stool softener doesn't make you go, it just makes it easier to go. dulcolax stool softener. make yourself comfortable. starts with arthritis pain and a choice.

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ask your doctor about once-a-day xarelto®. for more information including cost support options, call 1-888-xarelto or visit goxarelto.com. >> glor: with the fiscal cliff getting closer and closer, scott pelley has been talking to some of america's top corporate c.e.o.s about how to avoid it. tonight, scott asks lloyd blankfein, the chairman and c.e.o. of goldman sachs, about the consequences of failure. >> pelley: if we go over the fiscal cliff, as it's called, what happens to the economy? >> look, if we go over the fiscal cliff, it will be very bad, hugely negative for the stock market, which is a source of people's wealth. people will feel poorer. if we go over for a short period of time and adjust it, we can repair some of those things. but what you won't repair is people's attitudes towards the united states as a responsible

debtor. and that's very important. if we show that we're so irresponsible that we can't manage our affairs, people have no recourse but to invest with us today but they're going to work awfully hard to find alternatives very quickly. >> pelley: lloyd blankfein is among the world's most influential bankers, but he rarely does interviews. goldman sachs is the most successful investment bank on wall street with earnings last year of $4.4 billion. washington playing with fire? >> yes. yes. washington is playing with fire, and you don't get-- it's not like a football game where you get the two-minute warning. they don't-- you know, they don't tell you when you have-- you only get one more chance. and in some ways, the fact that the-- we're able to fund ourselves, finance ourselves, people are willing to lend to us so cheaply lulls people into a false sense of security. >> pelley: blankfein told us if it weren't for uncertainty in washington, there would be a lot of strength in the economy.

he says the u.s. will soon be the world's largest oil producer, american universities draw the brightest from all around the world, and american companies have more than $1 trillion of cash on hand to invest. if you had the president and the speaker of the house in this room and they asked for your advice, you would tell them what? >> in general? i'll tell you, i think i'm supportive of whoever is the most likely to lead us to a consensus, that will unify the country and get us all moving forward in the same direction. to me, whether the tax rate is 2% lower or higher or the cutoff age on some entitlement is one year less or more is secondary or tertiary to the fact that this country is focused on its future. >> glor: lloyd blankfein of goldman sachs with scott pelley. at the u.n. today, u.s. ambassador susan rice spoke

publicly for the first time about republican accusations that she made misleading comments about the attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi, libya. five days after the attack, rice said on the sunday morning news programs there was no evidence it was an act of terror. here's what she said today. >> when discussing the attacks against our facilities in benghazi, i relied solely and squarely on the information provided to me by the intelligence community. i made clear that the information was preliminary and that our investigations would give us the definitive answers. everyone, particularly the intelligence community, has worked in good faith to provide the best assessment based on the information available. >> glor: rice is being considered for secretary of state. some republican senators have vowed to block her nomination. jack taylor scored 58 points in the first half of a basketball

game last night. the first half. then, he got hot. we'll show you in a moment. moment. ain fiber in those mini-wheats® biscuits... to help keep you full... ♪ 45 bushels of wheat on the farm. 45 bushels of wheat! ♪ ...all morning long. there's a big breakfast... [ mini ] yeehaw! ...in those fun little biscuits.

>> glor: americans hit the road today for the thanksgiving holiday, and, for the fourth straight year, a a.a.a. survey projects more people will be on the move, 43.6 million in all. most of them, 39.1 million, are traveling by car. more than three million others will crowd on to planes for the annual pilgrimage.

it was a record night on the college basketball court. brunell's coach told jack taylor to shoot his way out of a slump, and he did. he scored an n.c.a.a. record 138 points leading the iowa college to a 179-104 win over faith baptist. taylor played all but four minutes of the 40-minute game, hoisting 108 shots, making 52 of them. he took a shot every 20 seconds. president obama stepped up to the fowl line today and continuing a thanksgiving tradition, he granted a pardon to a turkey. cobbler is his name. he will not be on the menu tomorrow. instead, he will live out his life at george washington's estates in virginia. in some places, feeding the hungry is more difficult this year. that story is next. next. we had a great spot, not easy to find, but worth it.

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get the facts at earnedasay.org. let's keep medicare... and social security strong for generations to come. [ male announcer ] yep, there's 8 layers of whole grain fiber in those mini-wheats® biscuits... to help keep you full... ♪ 45 bushels of wheat on the farm. 45 bushels of wheat! ♪ ...all morning long. there's a big breakfast... [ mini ] yeehaw! ...in those fun little biscuits. guards are not helping a vulnerable population. nextn cbs 5 finally tonight, the drought in this country had been easing the past few weeks. but the latest report out today says it's getting worse again. dean reynolds tells us the drought has meant a smaller harvest to feed a growing number of hungry americans.

>> the lord be with you. >> reporter: at the saint columbanus food pantry on this day before thanksgiving, they placed their trust in the lord. >> amen. >> i need you to take this all the way up to the front. >> reporter: and then turn things over to laverne morris. >> let's get all the potatoes back over here. i need the turkeys to make a second row right here. >> reporter: laverne, what is your job here? >> i'm the director of the food pantry here at saint columbanus. let's go! >> reporter: it's a literal definition. >> somebody get that over here. >> milk crates right here. >> reporter: she kept the food pantry going for eight years. she has no children. these folks are her family. >> where's 23? where's 24? >> reporter: every wednesday, 500 to 600 families line up to get their marching orders from laverne. >> where's 25? >> reporter: and their food from the stockpiles of the greater chicago food depository. almost 40% of the people served here are under 18. more than a third of the

households include at least one employed adult. >> thank you. >> reporter: kate maehr is executive director of the depository. >> the face of hunger is not just the face of a homeless individual but it's the face of somebody who has a job. >> reporter: and this year is made tougher by last summer's drought. >> normally by now we're getting all of the root vegetables, fresh corn. but because of the drought, we don't have it. we're giving away two apples to each family. >> reporter: okay. >> normally, we would be able to give about five or ten pound bag of apples to each family. >> reporter: if you didn't have this opportunity, you wouldn't have -- >> i wouldn't have a turkey. >> reporter: monica bonds, a mother of three, is bringing a turkey home. >> happy thanksgiving. >> thank you. you, too. >> reporter: laverne morris made sure of that. >> thank you. >> reporter: dean reynolds, cbs news, chicago. >> that is the "cbs evening news" tonight. for scott pelley, i'm jeff glor. good night.

captions by: caption colorado comments@captioncolorado.com >> your realtime captioner: linda marie macdonald good evening, i'm dana king. >> i'm allen martin. more than half a million californians are about to see a big increase in their medical insurance payments. and there may be very little that they or state officials can do about it. cbs 5 reporter grace lee tells us who is about to get hit and by how much. grace. >> reporter: that's really part of the frustration. it's not just the money although that's painful. this family that we spoke to is powerless and feel they are at the mercy of anthem blue cross which the state said had an 18% profit margin last year. >> there in the stack of mail was an anthem envelope saying,

open immediately important information about your plan. >> reporter: inside, it was very bad news for jan, a local pediatrician. her individual anthem blue cross insurance premium is about to go up nearly 25%. that's an extra $296 per month just for her. her husbands rates will go up 24%, meaning together them pay an extra $528 a month in february on top of what they're already paying. >> a 25% increase. i felt like i had been kicked in the stomach. i could hardly eat. i couldn't sleep. >> reporter: we asked blue cross why the sudden change? the spokesman said, quote, a rate adjustment is necessary to cover increasing medical costs and ensure the viability of our individual business. >> i found myself at midnight last night asking the question, why aren't we getting help from the insurance commissioner? >> reporter: he answered saying, hets